"A panel of 41 international experts... reviewed 20 years' worth of research to determine the cause of the Cretaceous-Tertiary (KT) extinction, which happened around 65 million years ago. The extinction wiped out more than half of all species on the planet, and... was caused by a massive asteroid slamming into Earth at Chicxulub (pronounced chick-shoo-loob) in Mexico. The asteroid, which was around 15 kilometres wide, is believed to have hit Earth with a force one billion times more powerful than the atomic bomb at Hiroshima. It would have blasted material at high velocity into the atmosphere, triggering a chain of events that caused a global winter, wiping out much of life on Earth in a matter of days."
Is exploration of new/unknown territories a government responsibility/right/privilege?
Check the U. S. Constitution - is this established as being within the scope of our federal government?
Historical precedent:
Can such exploration or eventual colonization be considered as the next "New World," i.e. similar to the Americas being explored and claimed by European countries in the 1400s - 1700s?
Likely impact of competition on the space program:
When private industry takes over development of a product/service does that product/service get better in quality? Lower in quality?
Find examples to support your conclusion: calculators, computers, air travel, train travel ...
When private industry takes over development of a product/service does that product/service get cheaper?
Is there a connection between government control and waste of resources and mismanagement of funds?
"Pork Barrel" - ...the appropriation of government spending for localized projects secured solely or primarily to bring money to a representative's district.
"Boondoggle" - The term "boondoggle" may also be used to refer to protracted government or corporate projects involving large numbers of people and usually heavy expenditure, where at some point, the key operators, having realized that the project will never work, are still reluctant to bring this to the attention of their superiors. Generally there is an aspect of "going through the motions" – for example, continuing research and development – as long as funds are available to keep paying the researchers' and executives' salaries.
Globalization:
Should we in fact be competing with other countries at this point? Or is this a time for international collaboration?
Would turning the space program over to private industry support competition OR globalization?
Logically support this claim.
Safety:
Is it the government's responsibility to protect us from foolish or dangerous decisions/products made by private industry?
Look up Ralph Nader/Unsafe at Any Speed
Would privatizing the space program prevent or encourage government regulation for safety in space travel?
Would competition in private industry hinder or encourage regulation for safety in space travel?
How does the BP oil spill reflect the level of responsibility of private industry as far as safety and environmental concern? The U.S. Department of Justice has imposed a $4 billion fine on BP Oil to settle its criminal liability over the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill that killed 11 people and dumped millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico for nearly three months.The DOJ fine will be paid over a period of five years; BP will also pay $525 million to the Securities and Exchange Commission over three years, reports the BBC. In addition to the criminal penalties imposed by the Obama administration, BP also has raised an estimated $42 billion to cover liabilities from the incident.The British company reportedly put up about 75 percent of the $20 billion Gulf of Mexico compensation fund; only $5.1 billion of which came from three smaller firms that accepted responsibility for the accident. A group of lawyers called the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee also won a $7.8 billion settlement from BP for the victims of the spill.
Money:
Can taxpayers continue to afford the expense of the space program?
How much money does NASA get in the annual federal budget?
This will look HUGE as a number
Find a way to show how big: A stack of quarters how high? (find out exactly how high) Enough to feed [how many] starving children through [name of a specific charity]
This same number may look tiny as a percentage of total spending: figure out the actual percentage
Find a clear example of how small this really is: The size of a ladybug on the back of an elephant?
Strong cases are built cohesively around Big Ideas, for example...
Exploration
Reaching Full Potential
Security
Resources
Pride
Often these Big Ideas are in opposition to one another:
Freedom vs. Safety
Tradition vs. Change
If you can think - and SPEAK - the language of Big Ideas, you have a more powerful presence.
What Big Ideascan you use to create a strong central premise in your argument?
Points to consider:
What did NASA ever do for ME?
Why should I care about space exploration? I am not nor will I ever be an astronaut -
- Asteroid collision with Earth
- Asteroid DA14
- What killed the dinosaurs: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/03/100304142242.htm
"A panel of 41 international experts... reviewed 20 years' worth of research to determine the cause of the Cretaceous-Tertiary (KT) extinction, which happened around 65 million years ago. The extinction wiped out more than half of all species on the planet, and... was caused by a massive asteroid slamming into Earth at Chicxulub (pronounced chick-shoo-loob) in Mexico. The asteroid, which was around 15 kilometres wide, is believed to have hit Earth with a force one billion times more powerful than the atomic bomb at Hiroshima. It would have blasted material at high velocity into the atmosphere, triggering a chain of events that caused a global winter, wiping out much of life on Earth in a matter of days."Is exploration of new/unknown territories a government responsibility/right/privilege?
Historical precedent:
The East India Company traded mainly in cotton, silk, indigo dye, salt, saltpetre, tea and opium. The Company was granted a Royal Charter in 1600,[2[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_India_Company#cite_note-2|]]] making it the oldest among several similarly formed European East India Companies. Shares of the company were owned by wealthy merchants and aristocrats. It was an example of an English joint stock company.[3[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_India_Company#cite_note-3|]]]. The government owned no shares and had only indirect control. The Company eventually came to rule large areas of India with its own private armies, exercising military power and assuming administrative functions
This suggests private corporations have in the past ended up acting as governments unto themselves; could this be a risk of privatization?**
Likely impact of competition on the space program:
When private industry takes over development of a product/service does that product/service get better in quality? Lower in quality?When private industry takes over development of a product/service does that product/service get cheaper?
Is there a connection between government control and waste of resources and mismanagement of funds?
Globalization:
Should we in fact be competing with other countries at this point? Or is this a time for international collaboration?
Safety:
Is it the government's responsibility to protect us from foolish or dangerous decisions/products made by private industry?
- Look up Ralph Nader/Unsafe at Any Speed
- Would privatizing the space program prevent or encourage government regulation for safety in space travel?
- Would competition in private industry hinder or encourage regulation for safety in space travel?
How does the BP oil spill reflect the level of responsibility of private industry as far as safety and environmental concern?The U.S. Department of Justice has imposed a $4 billion fine on BP Oil to settle its criminal liability over the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill that killed 11 people and dumped millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico for nearly three months.The DOJ fine will be paid over a period of five years; BP will also pay $525 million to the Securities and Exchange Commission over three years, reports the BBC.
In addition to the criminal penalties imposed by the Obama administration, BP also has raised an estimated $42 billion to cover liabilities from the incident.The British company reportedly put up about 75 percent of the $20 billion Gulf of Mexico compensation fund; only $5.1 billion of which came from three smaller firms that accepted responsibility for the accident. A group of lawyers called the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee also won a $7.8 billion settlement from BP for the victims of the spill.
Money:
Can taxpayers continue to afford the expense of the space program?
- How much money does NASA get in the annual federal budget?
This will look HUGE as a number- Find a way to show how big: A stack of quarters how high? (find out exactly how high) Enough to feed [how many] starving children through [name of a specific charity]
This same number may look tiny as a percentage of total spending: figure out the actual percentageStrong cases are built cohesively around Big Ideas, for example...
Exploration
Reaching Full Potential
Security
Resources
Pride
Often these Big Ideas are in opposition to one another:
Freedom vs. Safety
Tradition vs. Change
If you can think - and SPEAK - the language of Big Ideas, you have a more powerful presence.
What Big Ideas can you use to create a strong central premise in your argument?